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THE FIRST 



CENTENNIAL ANNIVERSARY 



OF THE 



COLLEGE OF NEW JERSEY. 



CELEBRATED JUNE, 184?. 



JMiurton, tf. Jr.: 

PRINTED BV JOHN T. ROBINSON, 

1848, 



CENTENNIAL ANNIVERSARY. 



The Trustees of the College of New Jersey, at their meeting, 
September 26th, 1843, appointed a Committee, consisting of Drs. 
Carnahan and Miller, and James S. Green, Esq., to consider whe- 
ther any, and, if any, what measures ought to be adopted to cele- 
brate the Centennial Anniversary of the College, and to report to 
the Board at the next meeting. 

The Committee reported at the next meeting of the Board in 
favour of a Centennial Celebration, and was continued. 

June 23, 1846, the Trustees resolved that the Centennial Cele- 
bration should take place on Tuesday, June 29th, 1847, the day 
preceding the hundredth Annual Commencement. 

To carry out these resolutions an invitation to deliver an oration 
was given to Governor McDowell of Virginia, and also an invita- 
tion to deliver an historical sketch of the College, was given to the 
Reverend Dr. James W. Alexander of New York. The Trustees 
at the same meeting adopted measures for establishing a depart- 
ment of Law in connexion with the College, and appointed the 
Honorable Joseph C. Hornblower, Chief Justice, James S. Green, 
Esquire, and Richard S. Field, Esquire, Professors of Law. 

Shortly before the day appointed, when it was too late to obtain 
another speaker, a letter was received from the Hon. James Mc- 
Dowell, stating that circumstances heretofore unforeseen and be- 
yond his control would prevent him attending the Centennial Cel- 
ebration and performing the part assigned him on that occasion. 
It was agreed that Henry W. Green, Chief Justice of this State, 
should occupy the time assigned to the Hon. James M'Dowell, in 
delivering an address at the opening of the Law School connected 
with the College. 



The committee of arrangements, consisting of the President of 
the College, the Reverend Dr. Samuel Miller ; Matthew Newkirk, 
Esquire, and James S. Green, Esquire, addressed a letter of invita- 
tion to attend the celebration, to the Presidents and other members 
of the Faculty of the Literary Institutions of the United States, and 
also to some distinguished individuals other than the Alumni. 

The Alumni received their invitation through the newspapers. 

As a dinner was to be served up for so large a company the 
committee of arrangements determined to spread the tables in^the 
College Campus in rear of the Chapel, and they were enabled 
through the kindness of Samuel W. Stockton, Esquire, of Philadel- 
phia, to procure two large tents which when erected covered an 
area sufficient for the purpose. 

The exercises of the Anniversary properly commenced on Sab- 
bath, June the 27th, when the President of the College, the Rev. Dr. 
James Carnahan. delivered his Baccalauriate sermon to the Senior 
Class in the Presbyterian Church in the village. On evening of 
Monday the next day, the Class of 1840 met in the Chapel of the 
Theological Seminary to hear an interesting and finished address 
from J. A Monroe, Esquire, a member of that class. 

At 12 o'clock on Tuesday, the Governor. Chief Justice Green, 
the President, Trustees and Faculty of the College and Law De- 
partment, the two U. S. Senators, Chancellor, the several Justices 
of the Supreme Court, with a large body of the Alumni and dis- 
tinguished strangers, assembled at the Law Building on Mercer 
street. After prayer by Dr. Carnahan, the procession proceeded 
to the Presbyterian church, to listen to the Address of Chief 
Justice Green. As the committee have been unable to procure a 
copy of the address, though application for it was made by the 
Professors of the Law Department and by the Trustees of the Col- 
lege, they use the following sketch from the Newark Daily news- 
paper. 

" The Chief Justice after a few introductory remarks, stating that 
Law rather than Literature would be the theme, proceeded to 
establish the great proposition that a nation's Laws form the most 
instructive portion of its history. It is there that the character, the 
genius, the progress and the refinement of a people are most legibly 
written. They constitute, it was said, the monument and the record 



of a nation's civilization — the only sure criterion of its freedom 
or its servitude. The inference is obvious that the laws must 
ever present an interesting subject of study and investigation, 
and hence under the Jewish Theocracy— under the polished des- 
potism of the East — amidst the Democracies of Greece — in the 
Roman Republic ; as in every subsequent period of time, the study 
has ever been a favourite pursuit of enlightened and educated men. 
Upon the revival of letters it became the favourite study of the 
clergy, and under the auspices of the church it was introduced into 
schools and universities, and formed an essential element of all lib- 
eral education. After briefly pursuing the history of the subject, 
the Chief Justice set forth and argued with emphasis the main 
propositions of his learned and able discourse — the necessity of a 
more assiduous cultivation of legal science — of a more thorough, 
systematic training of candidates for the Bar. ' I advocate it/ said 
he, with deep earnestness, •' as a measure necessary to sustain and 
to elevate the character of the profession — as a measure not less 
necessary to the pure and vigorous administration of justice — to 
the peace and order of society — to the security of social and political 
rights — to the maintenance and vigour of our free institutions — to 
the preservation of all that is valuable in liberty itself.' In eluci- 
dating and enforcing these fundamental truths, the speaker seized 
the occasion to explode and denounce certain popular prejudices 
and errors concerning the profession in language becoming the dig- 
nity of his position. The fallacy of the notion that educated law- 
yers promote litigation was exhibited with most convincing force. 
A noble eulogy was pronounced upon the Common Law, and some 
of its great expounders. 

" You will readily see that this course of thought is directly cal- 
culated to show the importance and necessity of a thoroughly edu- 
cated Bar, and the value of schools founded for thorough instruction 
in the science. This formed another leading topic of discourse, upon 
which it was shown that this preparation for the duties of the pro- 
fession, at all times and in every age important, was more than 
ever demanded in this period of rude license and innovation, when 
long established principles, and well settled opinions are uprooted 
as if from the mere love of novelty. The agitation of vital ques- 
tions in a season of popular excitement demands knowledge to 



discern the right, firmness to maintain it. Such times, it was 
strongly said, demand men who will maintain the right for the 
sake of the right — the honest boldness of Coke and the moral firm- 
ness which prompted the declaration of the fearless Jenkins — 
' Usurped authority I will not acknowledge. I fear not to die, but 
I will go to execution with the Bible upon my breast, with the 
Statute Law in one hand, and the Common Law in the other.' 

"To the young men present who contemplate the study of the law, 
the Chief Justice addressed himself with more than fraternal feel- 
ing, exhorting them, among other things, by no means to yield their 
love of classic literature in entering upon the study of the profes- 
sion — never failing of course to cultivate a proper estimate of the 
true ends and real dignity of the profession. He took care also to 
remind them that there is no moral power in mere intellectual 
greatness. 

" The hope was expressed, with manifest deference to the learned 
Faculty, that in the edifice now dedicated to instruction in legal 
science, the Common Law will be taught in its pristine purity 
and vigour. We need, said he, a revival of common law learning — 
of such learning as gave to the New Jersey Bar her Paterson and 
her Stockton. But I must desist. Time and space would fail me 
were I vainly to attempt to do justice to a discourse characterized 
by learning, wisdom, and good taste, and which was listened to 
with unbroken interest by one of the most enlightened audiences 
that I remember to have seen in Princeton or elsewhere." 

At 4 o'clock, the Alumni, strangers, <fcc. met in the Campus, — 
the Alumni taking place in the procession according to graduated 
seniority. There were a number of venerable men in the ranks of 
the Alumni — one who graduated in 1787, and several who gradu- 
ated previous to 1800. From thence the procession moved to the 
church, to hear the Centenary Discourse by Rev. James W. Alex- 
ander, D.D. The exercises were opened with a deeply moving 
and most appropriate prayer by the venerable Dr. Miller. Imme- 
diately after which Dr. Alexander arose and delivered a discourse, 
of which it would be impossible to give a sketch that would do 
justice to it. The research and industry of the speaker produced 
an amount of information that could not be compressed into the 
limits of an ordinary discourse. And the richness of intellect 



adorned what would in common hands have been a dry subject. 
He spoke between two and three hours, and then omitted part of 
what he prepared. 

The committee are authorized in saying, that the address from 
the unexpected growth of matter, will appear hereafter under the 
shape of a history, and will afford they have no doubt a rare grati- 
fication to those who love and venerate their Alma Mater. 

At the conclusion of the discourse, the following hymn was sung : 

i. 

Our father's God, we come to thee ; 

To thee our grateful voices raise ; 
Help us on this our Jubilee 

To join in humble, solemn praise, 
II. 
Before the throne of heavenly grace, 

Ye sons of Nassau, raise your songs : 
The mercies of a hundred years 

Demand your grateful hearts and tongue*, 
III. 
Through all the conflicts of the way, 

Our father's God has led us on ; 
His Providence has been our stay ; 

In Him we hVd, in Him alone. 
IV. 
A hundred years ! A hundred years ! 

Welcome the joyful jubilee ! 
Great God ! how rich thy love appears ! 

How large our mighty debt to thee ! 
V. 
Our Fathers ! lov'd and honour'd name ! 

We love to speak their hallow'd praise ; 
Through them what precious blessings came ! 

For them our hearty thanks we raise. 
VI. 
Our father's God still lives and reigns ; 

To Him we look, in Him rejoice : 
His love our confidence sustains, 

To Him we'll raise our grateful voice. 
VII. 
Smile, mighty God, forever smile, 

On this belov'd, and honour'd place ! 
Here let our sons forever come, 

And always find it wisdom's home, 



DOXOLOGY. 
Praise God from whom all blessings 0am \ 
Praise him all creatures here below ; 
Praise him above, ye heavenly host ; 
Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. 

In the evening the representatives of the Junior Class delivered 
orations in the following order : 

Fayette Clapp, Mass. — The source of the sublime, 
V. Keirn, Miss. — The Spirit of Monarchy. 
William C. Cattell, N. J. — Active Life, 

Charles S. Perkins. Miss.— Why has America no National Lite- 
rature. 
Cornelius W. Tolles, N. J. — There is a tide in the affairs of men 
James Stevenson, Ireland.-— The faded Shamrock. 
James M. Crowell, Pa.— Adaptation of Science to the Mind. 
Wm. M. Gillaspie, Miss. — The development system of Philosophy, 

The speaking was good, and creditable to the class. The Junior 
orations closed the exercises on Tuesday. During the day and 
evening the church was filled with an audience, which for beauty, 
intellect, and respectability could scarcely be surpassed. 

On Wednesday, at an early hour the church was thronged to 
hear the Orations by members of the Senior Class. The exercises 
were 

PRAYER BY THE PRESIDENT 

Henry Rikker, Pa. — Latin Salutatory. 

Henry Clay Cameron, D. C— English Salutatory.— Ancient Lit- 

erature, 
John M. Candor, Illinois. — Development of American Mind. 
T. Scott H. McCay, Miss, — The Advantages of the American 

Orator and Poet 
John Gosman, N. Y. — The True Principle of Action, 
D. S. G. Cabell, D. C. — Success in Life. 
Henry B. Munn, N. J.— The Spirit of the Age, 
Roeert Foster, N. J. — Electicism. 
Joseph M. Rittenhouse, N. J. — The Claims of Truth, 
William H. Armstrong, Pa. — National Amusements, 
Samuel B, Smith, N. J,— The Forgotten Great 



Frederic B. Ogden, N. J. — The Legal Profession. 

Edward P. Guerard — S. C— English Radicalism. 

W. S. Whitehead, N. J. — The Religions of Nature. 

James M. Johns, Del. — The Influence of Authors. 

William Wallace Marsh, N. J. — " The tomb does not take all 

away." 
Edward Pugh, La. — The Talisman of Greatness. 
Heister Clymer, Pa. — The Realization of the Ideal. 
George M. Robeson, N. J. — Our Institutions favourable to the 

cultivation of Eloquence. 
Samuel J. Milliken, Pa. — Things seen and unseen. 
William Sergeant, Pa. — " Labor improbus non omnia vincit." 
Augustine Fish, N. J. — Public Opinion not the Standard of 

Truth. 
Wm. H. Welsh, Pa.— A Poem. 

The Conferring of Degrees. 

The first degree of A. B. was then duly conferred upon the fol- 
lowing members of the Senior Class. 



John Mercer Adler, D. C. 
Daniel G. Anthony, Pa. 
Wm. H. Armstrong, Pa. 
Frederic Bacon, Canada. 
Henry C. Bartlett, N. Y. 
John A. Benbury, N. C. 
Wm. Henry Berry, D. C. 
W. A. Blevins, Ala. 
John Wesley Bunn, N. J. 
D. S. Garland Cabell, D. C. 
Henry Clay Cameron, D. C. 
John M. Candor, 111. 
Thomas L. Carothers, S. C. 
Robert B. Clark, Md. 
Heister Clymer, Pa. 
Thad. A. Culbertson, Pa. 
Alfred Cuthbert, Jr. Ga. 
Aaron P. Dalrymple, N. J. 
James F. Davison, N. J. 



James W. DiUard, N. C. 
Augustine H. Fish, N. J. 
Polycarp L. Fortier, La. 
Robert Foster, N. J. 
Ezra J. Fountain, N. J. 
John Glassell, jr. Va. 
John Gosman^N. Y. 
Edward P. Guerard, S. C. 
James M. Johns, Del. 
Montgomery Johns, Md. 
Eusebius Lee Jones, D. C. 
Charles H. Key, D. C. 
Wm. W. Marsh, N. J. 
Alfred Martien, Pa. 
Charles L. Maxwell, Ga. 
T. Scott H. McCay, Miss. 
JohnH.McKee, S.C. 
Charles McKnigfit, Pa. 
Samuel J. Milliken, Pa. 



10 

Samuel Moore, Del. George W. Shewalter, Va. 

Henry B. Munn, N. J. Samuel B. Smith, N. J. 

Thomas F. Murdock, Pa. Wm. Smithpeter, Tenn. 

Frederic B. Ogden, N. J. J. H. Stonestreet, Md. 

Henry H. Oliver, Ala. John H. Strother, Mo. 

Samuel H. Orton, N. J. John A. Swope, Pa. 

Edward Pugh, La. Henry Toland, Pa. 

Henry Rinker, Pa. B. R. Wellford, Jr., Va. 

J. M. Rittenhouse, N. J. Wm. H. Welsh, Pa. 

George M. Robeson, N. J. James T. Whitehead, Ga. 

Wm. Sergeant, Pa. Wm. S. Whitehead, N. J. 

N. A. C. Seward, N. J. Alpheus E. Willson, Pa. 

Total 62. 

The second degree in the Arts was conferred on the following 
named gentlemen, Alumni of the College : 

Moulton C. Rogers, James H. Dundas, James McDougall, Paul 
T. Jones, Henry M. Beach, Edward H. Bowen, Joseph M. Pinker- 
ton, Noah H. Schenck, Morven J. McClery, John Moody/ Charles 
Scribner, Thomas H. Rodman, Frank M. Levison, Charles F. 
Stansbury, John Conger, Jr., Wm. C. Prime, John L. Crane, Joseph 
T. Dillard, John S. Davison, Wm. J. Gibson, James S. Gibson, 
Frederick La Rue King, Luther Littell,David W. Eakins, Samuel 
P. Hill, Allen McFarlane, Andrew R. Martin, Richard H. Richards, 
Charles W. Shields, Henry H. Welles, Edward H. Wright, James 
B. Everhart, Wm. B. Cross, Thomas Ryerson, Geo. H. Newkirk, 
James S. Gilliam, Wm. Shippen, Jr., William Pannill, Edward M. 
Dod, Joseph H. Blackfan, James C. Welling, Henry Reeves, A. 
Alexander Little, Wm. Scribner, Thomas Sparrow, Wm. G. White- 
ly, J. Owen, Jr., Samuel Motter, Henry S. Little, Chas. A. Bennett, 
Hugh T. Booraem, John O. Marsh, Wm. H. Ballard, Robert D. 
Brooke, Robert F. Clark, Obadiah M. Conover, Wm. B. Gulick, 
Wm. McNair, Henry K. Rees, Martin Ryerson, James D. Straw- 
bridge, Alfred S. Williams, J. Telford Boyle, Samuel Frierson, 
Philip Cressman, Samuel Sawyer, Joseph F. Garrison, Richard H. 
Richardson, Charles W. Shields. 

The Honorary degree of D.D. was conferred on the Rev. Jona- 
than B. Condit, of Newark, N. J., and the Rev. Lyman Coleman, 
of Princeton. 



11 

The Honorary degree of A. M. was conferred upon the following 
gentlemen : 

Mr. William Vodges, Philip Nicklin Dallas, and George Ham- 
mersley, of Philadelphia, and Dr. George F. Fort, of Monmouth co. 
N. J. 

The following gentlemen were admitted to the second degree of 
the Arts ad eundem : 

Edward Armstrong of the University of Pa., Henry J. Raymond 
of the University of Vt. 

The degree of A. B. was conferred upon Charles Schley, of Md. 

Beverley Randolph Wellford, jr.Va. — Valedictory Oration. 

PRAYER AND BENEDICTION. 

The speeches generally were of a high character for eloquence. 
A splendid band enlivened the occasion by playing between cer- 
tain of the orations. 



THE DINNER. 

At 4 P. M. the Alumni and invited guests formed in procession, 
and marched to the Campus in the rear of Nassau Hall, where 
tables were spread beneath a spacious and commodious tent for 
the accommodation of about seven hundred persons. The storm 
of the preceding night and morning had passed away and had 
given new beauty and brightness to vegetation. 

James S. Green, Esquire, presided ; on his right were the Pre- 
sident of the College, Vice President Dallas, Judge Grier of the Su- 
preme Court of the United States, and Judge Dickerson of the Dis- 
trict Court of the United States, the Chancellor and Chief Justice 
of the State, Chief Justice Booth, and Chancellor Johns of Dela- 
ware ; on his left, the Professors of the Seminary, Bishop Doane, 
President Junkin, Professor Olmsted, Rev. N. L. Prime. In the 
front, Gov. Haines, Pennington, Stratton, and other ex-Governors 
of the State, Senators Dayton, Miller, and Cameron, and many 
other distinguished men. 

The dinner was handsomely served by Messrs. Bagley, Macken- 



12 

zie and Co. of the Columbia House, Philadelphia, at the expense of 
the Board of Trustees. Before the company was seated, and at 
the request of the President, the Rev. Dr. John M'Dowell invoked 
a blessing. While changing the courses, the following ode written 
for the occasion by Matthias Ward, Esq. was sung in good taste 
by Messrs. Carter, Alden, Ilsley and Wade, the whole company 
joining in the chorus. 

i. 

Tutti. Alma Mater, cherish'd mother, 
Hark ! thy sons their voices raise ; 
Loving kindred, friend, and brother, 
Meet again to hymn thy praise. 
Heaven bless this happy union, 

Mingling hearts estrang'd so long ; 
Here once more in fond communion, 
Old companions join in song. 

Chorus. Alma Mater, cherish'd mother, 

Hark ! thy sons their voices raise-; 
Loving kindred, friend and brother, 
Meet again to hymn thy praise. 
II. 
War has struck thy dwelling hoary — 

Weak the foe, and vain the fight ; 
Thou hast won a higher glory, 
Gentle peace, and truth, and right. 
Chorus. — Alma, &c. 
III. 
Fire has tried its fury o'er thee, 

Fierce the blaze and bright the flame ; 
Now the light that glows before thee, 
Shines to show the world thy fame. 
Chorus. — Alma, &c. 

IV. 
Lo ! an hundred years departed, 
Since thy tender infant hour ; 
Stronger now and stouter hearted, 
Time has but increased thy power. 
Chorus. — Alma, <fcc. 
V. 
Thou hast rear'd the pride of nations — 
Thine, thy country's boast abroad — 
Thine, who hold its honor'd stations — 
Thine, who teach the way to God ! 
Chorus. — Alma, &c. 



13 

VI. 
Never more as thus, we'll meet thee, 

Leaning on thy fost'ring arm ; 
May a century bring to greet thee, 
Souls as true and hearts as warm. 
Chorus. — Alma, &c. 

VII. 
Good and true men, gone before us, 

Leading to the upward way ; 
May their spirits hov'ring o'er us, 
Smile on Nassau's natal day ! 
Chorus. — Alma, &c. 

At the conclusion of the dinner, the President, James S. G 4 reen, 
Esq. introduced very gracefully the toasts, with the following pre- 
fatory remarks : 

Respected Guests — The Committee of Arrangements have 
prepared several toasts or sentiments which it is now proposed to 
offer. 

To the inquiry where is the wine, the committee respond, that 
the wisdom of modem times has discovered, that entertainments 
like these need not the aid of wine to enliven them. There are 
occasions, which contain in themselves the elements of excitement ; 
there are classes of men, whose association alone, call into action 
the strongest and liveliest emotions of the heart Have Ave not 
here such an occasion — have we not here an association of such 
men? What is the occasion — the celebration of the hundredth 
commencement of the College of New Jersey ! Who are here to 
celebrate this event ? The sons of Nassau Hall — the members of 
a large literary family — after being separated for many years, 
brought together around the festive board of their Alma Mater, 
These sons, settled in different parts of our widely extended repub- 
lic, engaged in various pursuits and professions, visit once more 
this endeared spot. Can it be otherwise than that the incidents of 
success or disappointments which have occurred to each on the 
pathway of life should furnish topics of rich and interesting con- 
versation? This band of brothers have much of thrilling interest 
to communicate — why should we interrupt such communion of 
thought by libations of wine ? Would not such interruption be in 
bad taste ? Would not this declare to the world, that we esteem 
the indulgence of our animal nature superior to the " feast of rea- 



14 

son and flow of soul? ;? Our hearts are full to overflowing — Ave 
need no additional excitements — assembled here within classic 
grounds our joys are the joys of wit and learning, of the recollec- 
tions of bye-gone days and of sincere attachment. 

As we owe the refined and intellectual pleasures of this hour 
under a kind Providence to our time-honoured Alma Mater, let me 
offer you the first toast prepared by the Committee : 

First Regular Toast. — Our venerated and beloved Alma Ma- 
ter, the College of New Jersey. 

This toast was received with loud and enthusiastic cheering. 
Second Regular Toast.— -The memory of the venerable Presi- 
dents of Nassau Hall. A precious catalogue equally honorable to 
our institution, to the church of God, and our beloved country. 

The President of the day said that he was reminded by the elo- 
quent and admirable historical discourse which had been delivered 
the afternoon before, by the Rev. Dr. James W. Alexander, that he 
might successfully apply to that gentleman for a response to this 
sentiment. 

The Reverend gentleman arose amidst the wannest greeting and 
said that he was gratified in having an opportunity of supplying 
what might have appeared to some an unpardonable omission in the 
discourse delivered by him yesterday afternoon. He had been com- 
pelled by exhaustion and want of time to omit much. He then 
proceeded to pay a noble tribute to the memories of Doctors Smith 
and Green, he portrayed their fostering care of the College. He 
described the valuable services and researches of the Rev. Dr. Sam- 
uel Stanhope Smith, which had been the basis of all ethnological 
inquiry. He stated some interesting facts and recollections of the 
venerable Doctor Ashbel Green, one of which was, that he was the 
first who introduced the Bible as a regular study in the College 
course. 

Third Regular Toast. — The memory of the founders and first 
board of Trustees of our College. Men of large minds and heroic 
hearts. We owe them a deep debt of gratitude and veneration. 

This called forth rapturous and repeated cheers from the com- 
pany. 

Fourth Regular Toast. — The Governors of New Jersey from 
174.7 to 1847, our honored patrons and benefactors. 



15 

In giving this toast the President remarked, that among so many 
Governors as he saw around, he scarcely knew on whom to call, 
but he would venture to appeal to Gov. Pennington whose maxim 
is "semper paratus." 

Gov. Pennington rose and said he could not feel otherwise than 
honored, by the President, in being called upon to respond to the 
toast just given. The only difficulty he felt, was to compress within 
proper limits, a response to a sentiment, which covered a century in 
time, and involved a long train of interesting events. He should 
not speak a word of the Governors now living, most of whom 
were present, it would be indelicate to do so, but he was at liberty 
to speak of the dead. And in doing so, he felt the just pride of a Jer- 
seyman in affirming, that no State in the Union could show a more 
illustrious line of Chief Magistrates than New Jersey, and that too 
as well under the Colonial as the State government. 

There is something of interest, Mr. President, in a man's ances- 
try, something in the stock from which he is descended, and whether 
its history be one of honour or of dishonour. And in a popular go- 
vernment, certainly, the character of the men who have sustained 
the highest stations among a people, will determine, more or less, 
the character of that people. 

The first Governor, commencing a century back, was Jonathan 
Belcher. After being Governor of Massachusetts and New Hamp- 
shire eleven years, he assumed by appointment of the crown, the 
government of the Colony of New Jersey, in 1746. And in 1748 
he signed the liberal Charter of the College of New Jersey. He 
was eminently a friend of learning, and if he did not lay the foun- 
dation of this College, he did more than any other man at that day, 
to encourage and foster it. Among other services he made the 
College a valuable present in a library, and was ever foremost dur- 
ing his administration, in promoting its interests. It is doing no 
small honour to his memory, that we can say, after experiencing the 
benefits of its annual contributions during the intervening century, 
to the learning, piety and patriotism of the country, that this ven- 
erable institution early received an efficient impulse from this hon- 
ored Chief Magistrate, sent to us in an auspicious hour by tho 
mother country. 

Upon the adoption of the constitution of the State in 1 776, William 



16 

Livingston was elected the first Governor. He was an ardefit re- 
publican, and took decided ground in the cause of his country. 
The friend and confidant of Washington, he was ready at all times 
to aid the cause of freedom. Elected in 1776, he continued 14 
years in office, and until removed by death. This fact, considering 
the eventful times in which he held office, and that he was annu- 
ally elected, furnishes strong evidence at once of the worth of the 
' man, and the value of his services, and the steadiness of the people 
by whom he was selected and sustained. 

Gav. Livingston was succeded by William Paterson, the eminent 
jurist, who has the credit of having framed the statute law of the 
State. After remaining a short time in the Executive chair, Gov. 
Paterson was chosen one of the Justices of the Supreme Court of 
the U. States ; and I need scarcely add that no man could attain 
such a station in that day, without great eminence as a lawyer, and 
great virtue as a man. 

It is sufficient to say of the four immediate successors of Judge 
Paterson, Governors Howell, Bloomfield, Ogden and Pennington, 
that they belonged to our golden age, the age of the revolution. They 
had fought the battles of their country with success, and carried 
with them to the grave, after lives of usefulness and honour, the 
scars received in her service. 

The late Gov. Williamson, a name familiar to us all, was a 
worthy successor of this illustrious line of veteran patriots. As a 
lawyer, he had no superiors in this or any other State. It is his 
proud distinction, that during a long public service, he gave system 
and order to the Court of Chancery, in New Jersey, and illustra- 
ted and established the principles of equity in a series of decisions 
that constitute an imperishable monument of his fidelity and learn- 
ing. Gov. Williamson was in manner a gentleman of the old 
school, an ornament to the station he filled, and he has left a name 
which Jerseymen will ever feel proud to honour. 

The last of the honored dead whom it is my privilege here to 
name, is the late Samuel L. Southard, whose name can never be 
mentioned among Jerseymen without emotion. A favorite son of 
New Jersey he was called to fill many stations of high rank and 
influence both under the State and General Government, and 
proved himself both competent and able in them all. This College 



17 

will long remember him with honest pride. He never spoke of her 
but with filial affection, and her welfare was ever near his heart. 
You and I, Mr. President, can bear ample testimony to his zeal in 
her cause, when as a member of the Board of Trustees he entered 
into the discussion of matters affecting her interests. Gov. Southard 
in all his personal relations and intercourse was eminently hospita- 
ble, kind and generous, and wherever he was and whatever cir- 
cumstances surrounded him, he was always a Jerseyman. 

In conclusion the Governor expressed the hope, that Jerseymen 
ever mindful of their honorable descent and the noble example of 
their fathers, would in their future elections to fill the Executive chair, 
feel their obligation to select none other than patriotic and honorable 
men. 

Fifth Regular Toast — The memory of the long line of Pro- 
fessors of Nassau Hall. How much we owe them, we can never 
estimate. 

Sixth Regular Toast — The Log College — the humble but noble 
nucleus of the College of New Jersey. 

Seventh Regular Toast — Our sister Colleges in the United 
States — 

" Facics non omnibus una, 

Nee diversa tamen, qualem decet esse sororum," 

The President having announced this toast remarked while I see 
before me the representatives of many of our sister Colleges I hope 
my Right Reverend friend, the President of Burlington College, 
will favour us with a response to this toast. 

Bishop Doane arose and said : 

Mr. President, — I count it an especial courtesy that I, who 
represent the youngest of the fair and gracious sisterhood of Col- 
leges, should so be called upon, to-day, to answer for them all. A 
courtesy, permit me to declare, which touches not my heart alone, 
but thrills the breasts of not a few among New Jersey's truest sons, 
who feel, as done to them, the honour which is paid, through me, to 
our young College. An honour, I will add, which this great College 
can well afford to pay. A College, which crowns to-day, with so 
much splendour the circle of a century. A College, which has sent 
forth through our land the wisest statesmen, the truest patriots, the 
most eloquent orators, the profoundest philosophers, of which our 

3 



18 

country boasts. A College, the jewels in whose ehaplet shine with 
a resplendence, which fills our own land, and is radiant abroad : of 
which the ode, in which Ave all united, but a little time ago, most 
justly says 

" Thou hast reared the pride of nations ; 
Thine, thy country's boast abroad ; 
Thine, who hold its honored stations ; 
Thine, who teach the way to God !" 

" Our Sister Colleges of the United States — 

"Facies non omnibus una 
Nee diversa tamen qualem decet esse sororum." 

Which may be rendered out of hand — 

They seem not one, 

And yet, not two ; 
But look alike, 

As sisters do. 

That were a low and mean requirement, which should hold all 
Colleges to bear one aspect. They must be various, to meet the va- 
rious wants, the various tastes, the various characters, the various cir- 
cumstances of men. A country such as ours, so vast, so rapidly in- 
creasing, so diverse in its interests, so full of mind, so full of men, must 
of necessity have many Colleges. Theirs is a narrow view, who 
look Avith grudging eye upon the increase, in all directions, of our 
literary institutions. Theirs is an idle and umvorthy apprehension, 
Avho regard a rising College, as the rival of all those Avho Avere be- 
fore it. No feelings such as these possess your minds. I say it, 
Avith a grateful pride, as a true Jerseyman, that from the Colleges 
before established in this state, the venerable College of NeAV Jersey 
here, and her honored sister, Rutger's College, at NeAV BrunsAvick, 
the College Avhich I represent has received nothing but kindness, 
nothing but cordiality, nothing but confidence, from the moment of 
its first projection ; and I am here before you all to-day, to give my 
solemn pledge, for Burlington College, that it is reciprocated and 
returned, most fully and most faithfully, and shall be, Avhile a stone 
of it shall stand. For Ave all propose one end, the only Avorthy 
end of any College, to train up patriots and christians ; men that 
shall serve Avith a true heart, their country and their God. 

Mr. President — as I look abroad upon this vast assemblage, I 
feel constrained to say, and that in no irreverent spirit, " It is good 
for us to be here." For the ends and aims of this, our festive 



19 

gathering, are so high, so pure, so holy, that the very words of sa- 
cred scripture may become them well. Surely, it "is good for us 
to be here.' 7 Centennial celebrations, such as this is, are our appeal 
to all the past. They signify and certify that reaching back, to- 
wards the first fountain of our being which appertains to man, in 
his moral and immortal nature. The love of antiquity is an in- 
stinct of our immortality. It is the impulse of the God within us. 
its backward look, toward him from whom we sprang, and in 
whose image we were made, is twin born with the instinctive 
yearning for re-union with Him, hereafter, in his eternal blessedness 
and glory. I feel that "it is good for us to be here," as a testimonial 
before all the world, of our devotion to the cause of Education. It 
is the noblest cause which can enlist our hearts and animate our 
hands. The highest and truest interest of our country. Nay, the 
highest and truest interest of man. His training to be useful here. 
His training for eternal happiness in Heaven. For when we speak 
of Education, we mean, and all men know we mean, to speak of 
Christian Education. The nurture and the training of the body, 
of the mind, and of the heart. The nurture and the training of a 
moral and immortal nature. The day has passed, thank God, 
when these things might be severed. The day has passed when 
they must be divorced, whom God has joined together. Lord 
Brougham himself has lived to own the fallacy of his own scheme. 
It is admitted iioav, that to attempt to educate without the Gospel, 
is to rear a superstructure where there is no foundation. It is ad- 
mitted now, that every hope of man's improvement, that every in- 
terest of human life, that every institution of our country, demands 
that Education shall be Christian Education ; its highest end, its 
noblest aim, the restoration in man's fallen nature, of that divine and 
gracious image, in which it first was made. And I am not ashamed 
to say that I rejoice to be here, as it is a rallying of Jerseymen, and 
of the friends of Jerseymen. They who are here were either 
born amongst us, or have had nurture here. They have come 
back to the fountain, which gave vigour to their youth. Come to 
renew their vows of love. Come to refresh and reinvigoratc their 
spirits. Come to resume the race of study and of glory, with a new 
and nobler impulse. It is upon the soil of our beloved Jersey, that 
we gather here to-day, and the effect will be, and therefore I rejoice 



20 

to draw the eyes and minds of men to that, for which New Jersey 
is especially adapted. I have long thought, and once before have 
said that the true interest of New Jersey is the educating inter- 
est. We cannot cope with other States, in the extent of territory. 
We cannot cope with them in numbers or in wealth. We cannot 
cope with them in commerce. But in her geographical position, in 
her beauty and salubrity of soil and climate, in her accessibleness 
from everywhere, in her well ordered institutions, in her pure 
morals, in her simple manners, in all her social interests and influ- 
ences, New Jersey is unrivalled, as a seat of Education. This is 
beginning to be felt. This will be felt more with every year. It is 
owned at the North. It is admitted by the South. It is acknowl- 
edged from the West. It is our great work. Our work for the 
country. Our work for man. Our work for God. To train the 
fathers and the mothers of a Patriot and Christian race : this is 
our work. Let us arise and do it ! 

" Our sister Colleges of the United States — 

' -fades non omnibus una, 

Nee diversa tamen ; qualem decet esse sororumj " 

There is as much of wisdom, in the language chosen to express 
this sentiment, as there is of real poetry. " Our Sister Colleges !" 
It is the thought of all, to take the hearts of men. The truest 
thought that this connection could employ. Who has not felt the 
soothing of a Sister's hand ? Who has not felt the cheering of a 
Sister's voice ? Who has not felt the charming of a Sister's eye ? 
What else comes so in aid of the parental influence ? What else 
so soon exerts its sway with brothers and with sons ? What else 
retains its hold so long in manly hearts ? " Our Sister Colleges" 
the soothers, and the cheerers, and the charmers of our youth ! 
Sorores formosce, almce matres. 

Mr. President — before I close, I have a privilege to claim. There 
is a name, which all this day has been in all my thoughts, which 
I must name before I take my seat. It is the name of one, whose 
noble heart would have exulted in this cheering spectacle ; would 
have run over, with delighted joy, at this great triumph of his Col- 
lege, and his State ; would have assented to every word that I have 
uttered ; would have sympathised with every feeling that I have 
felt I hope that you, and all who have a better right than I, who 



21 

am not of your College, but am yet a Jerseyman, to name this 
name, will pardon me for naming it. I propose to you, Mr. Presi- 
dent, THE EEAUTIFUL AND BELOVED MEMORY OF PROFESSOR DoD. 

This was received by the company with deep emotion and uni- 
versal silence. 

After a few moments pause, the President remarked that the re- 
sponse to the sentiment from our youngest sister was so much in 
unison with the feelings of the company, that he could not refrain 
from asking a few remarks from Professor Olmsted on behalf of an 
elder sister. 

He arose and after a few introductory remarks, proceeded as 
follows : 

I come, Mr. President, specially delegated from the President and 
Faculty of Yale College, to convey to the honored guardians, the 
Faculty, and the Alumni, of this venerable seat of learning, their 
most respectful salutations. I am glad that this interesting duty 
has been assigned to me, since it has given me an opportunity of 
hearing and seeing so much, that is fitted to enlist the sympathies, 
and awaken the enthusiasm of every scholar. How delightful are 
these occasions, which assemble in one joyous band ; beneath the 
shades of their revered Alma Mater, the oldest and the youngest 
of her sons ! 

Thus stands an aged elm in ivy bound, 
Thus youthful ivy clasps an elm around. 

Blest be the golden chain, which here entwines itself around all 
hearts, binding trustees to faculty and students, preceptors to pupils, 
and classmate to classmate, while, through every link, from pole to 
pole, flashes the electric fire ! Few situations in the world appear 
to me so favored of heaven as the lot of the collegiate instructer. 
In addition to his intrinsic sources of happiness, arising from the 
very nature of his employment, — the delightful task of imbibing 
truth at its fountains, and of pouring it into the opening minds of 
youth — he becomes as he advances in life, rich in friends. Hav- 
ing been long in the ranks of instructers, it is my high privilege, 
whenever I go abroad, to meet, at almost every step, some of my 
former pupils — some far onward in the race of life, and some just 
entering the arena ; but wherever found, or whatever age, still our 



22 

hearts kindle as Ave meet, and as they give the friendly grasp, I 
feel the warm current flow into my soul. 

" fortunatos nimium, sua si bona norint, 
Agricolas !" 

No husbandmen are so fortunate, as those who devote themselves 
to the culture of the youthful mind. I shall ever account it one of 
the happiest events of my life, that I have been permitted to parti- 
cipate in this interesting centennial celebration ; and my fervent 
aspirations shall ascend, that Nassau Hall, already fertile in great 
and good men, may continue to bless our land to the latest genera- 
tions. 

Three hearty cheers were then given for the elder and younger 
of the sisterhood. 

Eighth Regular Toast. — The Smithsonian Institute — A 
high national trust. May that trust be so discharged as to make it 
a great Light House, not only to the United States, but to the 
world. 

In announcing this sentiment the President in a few well-chosen 
words, called upon Vice President Dallas, the Chancellor of the 
Institute for a response. He arose, and spoke in substance as fol- 
lows : 

My connection, Mr. President, with the Smithsonian Institution, 
so honorably and kindly noticed, is merely " ex officio" — the act of 
Congress for its establishment constituting the Vice President of 
the United States, during his term of office, a member of its Board 
of Management. I can claim no other but this slight ground for 
venturing to reply to your call as its representative here. 

There are some sentiments, however, springing directly out of 
the occasion, which I wish first to express : especially, after having 
listened to several addresses from brothers — Alumni— character- 
ized by a very ardent and appropriate tone of exultation and 
delight. 

To me, Sir, it has been all day, and it would still be, far easier 
to muse and feel than to think or speak. There are times when 
we are perhaps too forcibly struck by the transient nature of what 
we have most cherished and revered. Some may be present who. 
like myself, after many years of absence from these academic 
scenes, and having spent two-thirds of life in active toil, return, as 



23 

rapid visitors, to experience no exclusive sense of enjoyment, but 
rather one mingled as well of pain as of pleasure and pride. 1 
have wandered about Princeton this whole morning, in pursuit of 
persons and objects that yet live glowingly in my memory : and I 
have found nothing remaining, familiar to my eye or to my heart, 
except the stone walls of the College ! There those walls stand, it 
is true, with the same cold and grave colour ; looking as imperish- 
able as ever : but where are the adjuncts by which they were sur- 
rounded ? — the human beings and the favorite haunts with which 
I associate them, and whose absence seems so to strip the scene as 
to inspire a mood of melancholy meditation ? 

Sir, I should like to retreat, with the only two of my classmates 
whom I have met, (Chancellor Johns, of Delaware, and Mr. Mat- 
thias O. Halstead, of New Jersey,) into some secluded corner of 
that firm old edifice, and quietly recal the incidents of forty years 
ago ! I should like to tall?, to talk slowly and long, of Samuel 
Stanhope Smith ! the erudite scholar, the polished gentleman, the 
affectionate teacher, and the pious orator : beloved and honoured 
by his pupils ; and whom I last parted with as a warm and gene- 
rous friend ! Where is he now ? and where the numerous, accom- 
plished, and attractive groups that graced his domestic circle? 
Dispersed, disappeared, gone ! Where is the learned and venera- 
ted linguist Thompson ? — -in an unseen grave : and our thousand 
footsteps, as we hastened to this feast, brushed unconsciously and 
heedlessly over the very spot on which his rural homestead stood.* 
The Mathematician — the clear-headed and warm-hearted Maclean 
— whose profound science, set off by a guileless manner and the 
gentlest temper, like a diamond encased in pearls, riveted the high- 
est and fondest regard : he, too, has sunk to the same tranquil re- 
pose, though leaving, as his successor, a worthy son to repeat his 
career and remind us of his virtues. 

My search, among the pilgrims whom this hundredth Anniver- 
sary has allured back to the shrine of education, for my own spe- 
cial companions in study, proved equally sad. Two are here, two- 
thirds are no more ! 

And I have gazed beyond the college bounds, in my moody 

* His house ha* been removed, and the walk passes over the ground where it 
stood. 



24 

exploration, and have asked where is the patriot, the strong law- 
yer, the man of boundless hospitality, Richard Stockto?i ? Gone 
for ever : and even he whose veins swell with his gallant blood 
is many thousands of miles away, perilling his life in the cause 
of a country his fathers aided to found ! And where is Samuel 
Bayard? and Morfard? and Macmackin? and Voorhees? 
and Clark ? — and many, many others ? 

Sir, the avenues and highways, the Church and the College, the 
literary Halls, and the Library, are all crowded to overflowing : 
but to the invocations of my memory, their echoes seem to re- 
turn as from an empty solitude ! 

But, Mr. President, I am trespassing : the vast majority of those 
who hear me can have little or no sympathy with these reflections. 
They find their honored chief still adorning his important post, 
their professors still in the full tide of usefulness and reputation, 
and the associates and friends of their early happiness, with radiant 
smiles and extended arms, eager to renew their welcome. Such a 
sight wins one away from sombre retrospection. I yield to its ex- 
hilirating influence all my heart; and feel a glow of pleasure and 
of pride, as I remark the numberless improvements which have 
sprung up since my departure. The advanced system of tuition ; 
the lengthened catalogue of attending students ; the co-operating 
chairs of theology and law : those two classical structures conse- 
crated to friendship and literature, whose white Ionic columns shine 
so beautifully in contrast with the verdure of the Campus : the ris- 
ing architectural neatness of that Hall of Prayer : those majestic and 
umbrageous tr§es : that iron railing, dividing the academic shade 
and the busy thoroughfare : the commodious brick mansion that 
overlooks the site of the once flower-embosomed cottage of Dr. 
Thompson: these, and various other striking and advantageous 
changes, attesting an onward course of cultivation and of character, 
I contemplate with delight. Our Alma Mater keeps pace with 
the march of mind ; and now merits the gratitude of a nation to- 
wards whose best wealth, the wealth of intellect and virtue, she 
has made her annual contributions for a rounded century ! 

And now, Mr. President, a few words on the allusion which 
called me to my feet. The Smithsonian Institution originated in 
the legacy of a British subject, whose will devotes it to the increase 



25 

and diffusion of knowledge among men. We can but conjecture 
his motive for selecting the American government as the agent, 
and the American people as the immediate beneficiaries, of his 
plan. His foot had never touched our soil : he knew very few, if 
any, of our citizens ; and of the practical working of our institu- 
tutions, whose principles he must have read of and admired ; he 
was wholly ignorant. Surrounded, in every section of Europe, by 
learned societies and establishments, with some of which he was 
connected, why did he not secure the fame which they can readily 
bestow, by depositing his fortune in their care ? Was it, that he 
knew them too little to appreciate them highly ? Or was it, that 
he knew them too well, to be able to repress a distrust as to the 
faithful and efficient pursuit of his philanthropic object? James 
Smithson, in his ultimate testamentary disposition, seems to have 
been exclusively impelled by a devoted fondness and exalted esti- 
mate of Knowledge : not learning, not erudition, not this or that 
Science or Art, not book- wisdom alone, not speculative philosophy 
only ; but broad, comprehensive, universal Knowledge ; and for 
the dissemination of that among his fellow beings, unimpeded by 
prejudice, bigotry, rank, corruption or injustice, he could discern no 
theatre so promising, so safe, or so vast, as society's fresh and free 
organization in this western world. He was not mistaken. Mind 
is at work in the United States on a scale never before witnessed. 
The Pierian spring is more eagerly visited here, and its deep drafts 
coveted by greater numbers, than any where else. Yes, Sir, the 
noble bequest of five hundred thousand dollars, for the increase 
and diffusion of knowledge, is placed where the condition and spirit 
of men are best prepared to receive and develope its advantages. 

The scheme of operation by which the Smithsonian Institution 
may effect the object of its munificent founder can scarcely yet be 
considered as matured. I could not undertake its explanation 
without an unreasonable encroachment upon jrnir time. Under 
the elaborating hands of zealous genius, many parts of the system 
have taken distinct and definite delineation : some soon to be prac- 
tically tried, others waiting preliminary arrangements and collec- 
tions : but that of which we are at liberty to congratulate ourselves, 
as a matter placed out of the reach of risk, is the recorded resolu- 
tion of the national government to assume and execute the trust. 

4 



26 

The Institution created by act of Congress, though neither Univer- 
sity, College, nor Academy, is of a kindred character, and, as such, 
is fairly entitled, in its infant movement, to the good will and en- 
couraging cheer you have so cordially expressed from Nassau Hall. 
I hope, Sir, that they to whose guardianship its progress is confided 
will discharge the duty under an abiding sense of responsibility, 
not merely to their own country, but to the entire human family. 
Our aim will be, by persevering efforts of every sort, to obey the 
injunction of Smithson, and give to Knowledge its largest growth 
and widest expansion. I need hardly tell those who hear me that, 
for this spirit and the tenor of our way, we have given a pledge at 
once direct and indisputable : we have invoked and obtained the 
co-operation of one of the recognized heads of American Science — 
your own peerless Henry ! 

The mention of the name of Professor Henry, who was detained 
from the entertainment by indisposition, produced a universal burst 
of appreciation from the assemblage. 

Ninth Regular Toast.— Popular Education. May it be univer- 
sal, and everywhere bear the stamp of the Bible ; the only basis of 
social order, of rational freedom, and true happiness. 

Tenth Regular Toast — The Alumni of the College of New 
Jersey, who have been distinguished for their talents, their learning 
and their public services. To these their Alma Mater may point 
and say, in the language of the Roman mother — " these are my 
jewels." 

In looking over the upturned faces of the assembly, the President 
fixed his attention upon the Rev. N. S. Prime, of New York, one of 
the few remaining representatives of the class of 1804, who arose 
in obedience to the call and said : 

Mr. President — A sentiment so flattering as that which has just 
been presented, and one so deeply marked by parental partiality 
and pride, assuredly demands a most grateful response. It was 
courteous, and even proper for you, sir, to call upon one of the 
elder graduates — the lingering remnants of a second generation in 
this revered institution— to perform this duty. My only regret is 
that out of the 230 survivors, who are my seniors, and who are so 
largely and so ably represented on this joyous occasion, your eye 
should not have lighted on a more competent individual. But I 
may without arrogance aver, that the service could not have been 



27 

committed to one who possesses a more grateful heart. And in 
making this remark, I mean nothing in disparagement of the filial 
affection of my respected brethren, present or absent, to each and 
every one of whom, I cheerfully accord an equal participation in 
the affectionate devotion of dutiful and grateful sons. 

In the interesting exercises of yesterday, the patriotism of our 
fraternity received a high and deserved encomium, in the indispu- 
table fact, that among all our numerous family, there never has 
been found " a Princeton Tory? I am bold to make an equally un- 
qualified claim, that of all her two thousand eight hundred hon- 
oured sons, Nassau Hall — our beloved Alma Mater — has never 
nursed and reared an ungrateful child. Of this entire number, 
who have successively occupied these hallowed grounds, conse- 
crated by the blood of patriotism and the prayers of piety, who 
have walked these charming groves, sacred to the muses, and been 
nurtured in yonder halls, the abode of literature and science, every 
heart without a single exception, has imbibed the flame of filial af- 
fection, that has never abated, nor been extinguished, but by the 
icy hand of death. In all the diversified occupations of life — amid 
all the varied circumstances of this changeful life — under the smiles 
and frowns of a capricious world, the fondest recollections of each 
and every individual, have been directed to Nassau Hall, and the 
fervent aspirations of their grateful hearts, have ascended to heaven 
for the continued prosperity of Alma Mater. 

More than 500 (nearly one-fifth of the whole number) have been 
heralds of the cross ; of whom I have the honour to be one of the 
humblest individuals, — others have largely shared in the honours 
and responsibilities of our beloved country — a few have been un- 
distinguished, and still fewer have fallen hapless victims to the 
baser passions of our fallen nature. But not an individual has been 
found who has lost his attachment to the maternal bosom that 
nursed him. I have often seen a degraded individual, once an ac- 
knowledged brother, who had become a slave to the giant vice of 
former days, and finally closed his miserable career in an almshouse, 
whose chief delight in his insane peregrinations for years consisted 
in passing encomiums on his Alma Mater ; and, in testimony of 
what he accomplished, under her tutelage, and of what he might 
have been, but for the voluntary servitude of a depraved appetite. 



26 

would retail with ease and elegance, whole pages of the classics. 
Mr. P. concluded with an impressive admonition to his brethren 
of the alumni. 

Eleventh Regular Toast. — The Literary Societies of Nassau 
Hall. May they ever deeply feel how much it is in their power to 
minister to the strength, the enlargement and true glory of their 
honored mother. 

The President said, my call for a response to this sentiment is 
made to Walter C. Preston, Esq., a graduate member of the Clio- 
sophic Society. 

Mr. Preston answered in strains of fervid eloquence, in which 
he set forth the advantages of the Societies in the cause of educa- 
tion and literature. 

The President then called upon the Hon. John Thomson Mason, 
a graduate member of the American Whig Society, who rose and 
in substance said : 

Mr. President : After what has been so eloquently and touchingly 
said by others, modesty perhaps would require that I should with- 
hold my humble tribute from this rich intellectual feast. The 
flattering manner however with which you have called upon me 
to respond to the sentiment just read, and the deep interest I feel 
in the scene that surrounds us, leave me no other alternative but to 
make my acknowledgement for the honour you have done me, and 
to attempt in a feeble manner to pour forth those emotions of the 
heart which are always awakened by scenes like the present, and 
by the allusion to joys that are past. My only regret is, sir, that 
some one more competent to the task than myself, had not been 
called upon to give utterance to those feelings which are inspired 
by the sentiment which has just been offered. 

The American Whig and Cliosophic Societies ! What a crowd 
of tender and touching memories are awakened by the mention of 
those names ! 

" Lulled in the countless chambers of the brain, 
Our thoughts are linked by many a hidden chain, 
Awake but one, and lo, what myriads rise." 

Memory, faithful to her trust, restores to us on this interesting 
occasion, friends that are gone to return no more — scenes that are 
passed never again to be reacted, and although years have passed 
since many of us met, yet the memory of other days comes crowd- 



29 

ing upon me with such overpowering force, that methinks 1 hear 
the familiar voices of long lost companions, and feel the warm 
touch of hands which in truth I shall never grasp again. 

Mr. President, this Institution possesses an excellence, which I 
have never known possessed by any other, at least to the same ex- 
tent. It consists in being able to stamp upon the mind of its youth- 
ful alumni, an attachment for his Alma Mater, which no time nor 
circumstance can efface. In after life, neither age nor infirmities 
— neither prosperity nor misfortune — neither honour nor disgrace, 
can turn us from our first love, but as as the affectionate child re- 
merrjaers the tenderness of its parent, and the early joys of home, 
so do our affections cluster around this endeared spot, which is 
known to us all as, 

Sweet Princeton, " loveliest village of the plain." 

And whence does this attachment spring ? Sir, it has its origin 
in the literary societies connected with the College. It was there 
that this bud of friendship and attachment first unfolded itself, nur- 
tured by the closest confidential intercourse — it was there that was 
implanted in our virgin breasts much that is valuable in life and 
noble in character — it was there that was cultivated that fraternal 
feeling which has since matured into permanent, enduring friend- 
ship — it was there, in the quiet of night, while others were lost in 
sleep, or engaged in the pursuits of solitude, in idleness or in dissi- 
pation, that we were forming those ties of attachment for one an- 
other and for our Alma Mater, which time has but strengthened, 
and by the force, of which, and after the lapse of many years, we 
are now drawn together with 

" Souls as true and hearts as warrn," 

as they were when years ago we left these peaceful shades to enter 
upon the scenes of active life. 

Let those two literary societies, however, remember, that the ex- 
istence of the one, depends upon the existence of the other ; and 
that if that spirit of emulation, which, when kept within its proper 
limits, is the life blood of them both, should be suffered to become 
wicked and licentious, and should lead to the destruction of one of 
those bright sisters, the survivor when deprived of her fostering 
companion, must soon sicken and die, and with the parent of them 
both early fill one common grave. 



30 

May such a result be forever averted, and may they continue to 
grow in strength, wisdom, learning and virtue, is the sincere prayer 
of one who has deeply at heart their welfare and usefulness. 

Twelfth Regular Toast. — Let the motto of our College be that 
of the "Empire State," " Excelsior" — unlimited enlargement and 
improvement. 

Thirteenth Regular Toast. — The venerated Mothers of our 
land. Their early and wise instruction is the best human prepar- 
ation for a successful and happy College course. 

The regular toasts having been gone through with, the venerable 
Dr. Miller, rose and proposed — 

The Rev. Ashbel Green, D.D. L.L.D. — Our venerated eighth 
President : We honour him as the first Head of a College in the 
United States, who introduced the study of the Bible as a regular 
part of the Collegiate course. Sero in ccelum ascendat ! And, when 
he shall be taken up, we may well say with the bereaved Prophet of 
old — a my Fattier, my Father, the chariots of Israel, and the horse- 
men thereof!" 

The President stated, that he had visited his father, Dr. Green, 
the Aveek before Commencement, to see if his physical strength 
would bear the fatigue of a visit to Princeton. I found him in his 
study, reading his Greek Testament ; I gave him a pressing invi- 
tation, but he declined it. "I cannot go," said he; "my bodily in- 
firmities are such that I should be a burden to my friends. A man 
in his 86th year ought not to leave home. I should love dearly to 
be at the gathering of the sons of the College ; I have many be- 
loved pupils among them. I cannot go, but one thing I can do, or 
you can do it for me : give my love to them." 
The Rev. Dr. Miller then offered the following : 

The Reverend Doctor James W. Alexander— Our able and 
honoured Centennary Historian. We thank him that he has so 
instructively and eloquently told us what the College of New Jersey 
has done. We hope he will live to see her accomplish far greater 
things than these. 

Dr. Alexander very briefly recognized this honourable mark of 
attention, and increased the obligations of his audience by a few 
further interesting reminiscences, in which he mentioned the hon- 
oured names of many distinguished alumni whom the College had 
contributed to the highest posts in church and state. 



3! 

The Reverend Dr. John Maclean then offered the following : 

Chief Justice Green — May the pupils of Nassau's Law School 
emulate the learning; and wisdom of its distinguished orator. 

To which the Chief Justice replied in a felicitous manner, assur- 
ing the learned Professor — that if he deserved any credit for classi- 
cal learning it was due to him as his teacher. He then pronounced 
a short but eloquent eulogy upon the late Hon. Tapping Reeve, an 
alumnus of the College, and for some time one of its tutors : and 
the founder of the Law School at Litchfield, Connecticut, the first 
ever established in the United States. At this school, while under 
the direction of its distinguished founder, the Honourable Chief 
Justice himself had pursued the study of the Law. 

Loud calls from every side were made for Professor Maclean 
who in a few words responded to them ; and, after a playful re- 
mark or two upon the unexpected demand made of him, he ob- 
served, that it gave his colleagues and himself very great pleasure 
to witness so large a gathering of the Alumni and other friends of 
the College, much larger indeed than they had indulged the hope 
of seeing, but none too large, and assuredly one most welcome. 
He also expressed his confident hope, that the scenes of this day 
would serve to renew, and to increase, the interest they had all felt 
in the welfare of Alma Mater. 

Gov. Pennington stated that his neighbor and friend, Mr. Samuel 
Baldwin, of Newark, was the oldest living graduate of the College 
— that he graduated 77 years ago, and is now 93 years of age. 
He further stated that in calling to see him a short time since in 
company with Chancellor Frelinghuysen, he appeared in the full 
possession and enjoyment of his mind, and took up a newspaper 
and read with facility several passages which interested him, with- 
out the use of glasses. Governor Pennington then proposed — the 
health of the venerable Samuel Baldwin : the Christian scholar and 
gentleman. Which was received with great enthusiam. 

Mr. P. C. Van Wyck then rose and said it was not his intention 
to speak at any length. The virtues and merits of the different 
Presidents of the College had been so fully alluded to by the older 
graduates with so vivid a remembrance, and so many tributes of 
praise had been paid to their memories, that he now conceived it 
to be his duty to draw the attention of the audience to one whom 



3-2 

he and his fellow graduates had always looked up to with the 
greatest veneration and respect. Honoured for his talents, venera- 
ted for his wisdom, and beloved for his modesty and virtue. 

James Carnahan — The model of all good men whose merit is 
only equalled by the modesty of his demeanor. As he has done, 
may he long continue to honour and adorn the position he now oc- 
cupies, as President of Nassau Hall. 

President Carnahan responded to this toast. 

Mr. President, This is the first time in a life not very short, that 
I have risen to respond to a call similar to that now made. And as 
the call was not anticipated, I wish simply to say that my young 
friend, in the ardour of his feelings, has connected my name with 
the prosperity of the College, in a way more flattering than I could 
wish my best friends to claim on my behalf. 

It is true, and I rejoice in the fact, that the College has prospered 
during a part at least of the time I have had the honour of being 
connected with it. But it cannot have escaped your notice, or that 
of any one acquainted with the history of the College, that other 
causes than any merit on the part of him who addresses you, have 
been at work. Look at the long list of distinguished and good 
men who have preceded me, and whose virtues and labours were 
so justly and so eloquently recalled to our remembrance yesterday, 
and you will have no difficulty in discovering one cause of the 
present prosperity of the Institution. These are the men who per- 
formed the labour and gave Nassau Hall a reputation which at this 
day attracts public notice. 

To construct and put in operation a machine is the herculean 
task. To guide its subsequent movements is comparatively an 
easy matter. A body requiring an immense force to move it from 
a state of rest, may, you know, be kept in motion and be made to 
proceed with accelerated speed, by a few feeble impulses succes- 
sively applied during its progress. In the reputation of our prede- 
cessors, we have received a rich inheritance, and ours must be the 
disgrace of the reckless spendthrift, if it be not retained and handed 
down unimpaired to our successors. 

Another cause of the present success of the College, is the high 
distinction and eminent usefulness of its Alumni, in every depart- 
ment of professional and public life. Scattered over the length and 



33 

breadth of our land, filling with honour the most conspicuous and 
responsible stations, they have led parents and guardians to inquire 
where and in what school, the foundation of such eminence was 
laid ? And the answer " Nassau Hall, Princeton, New Jersey," has 
brought hither students in increased numbers — each parent wish- 
ing his son, to taste the same fountain from which Madison and 
Reeves and Livingston and Rush and Paterson and Stockton and 
Jlobart and Southard and an hundred other illustrious names drank 
in their early days. And let the Alumni who surround these tables 
and others scattered over our country act well their part in life and 
we will answer for it, that Nassau Hall shall not be deserted in 
time to come. 

Another fact, it would be injustice to overlook. It has been my 
good fortune, to be surrounded with an academic corps of which 
no College need be ashamed. Eminently qualified for their sta- 
tions, our professors to whom instruction in the different depart- 
ments of literature and science has been chiefly committed, have 
devoted to their official duties all their energies: and success in 
many cases has crowned their labours. These, sir, are the promi- 
nent causes which under the blessing of Almighty God have pro- 
duced the present prosperity of this College. 

Edward Dickerson, Esquire, then offered the following compli- 
mentary toast to Prof. Henry, 

As long as the Telegraph Wires shall extend from Maine to 
Louisiana, may the name of Henry ever be prominent. 

" Auld Lang 8yne"-^xms sung by Mr. James Alden, with de- 
lightful effect 

The writer of the Ode— Matthias Ward— was complimented in 
a toast. 

The following sentiment offered by Robert McKnight, Esq., of 
Pittsburgh, Pa., a graduate of the Class of 1839, was received with 
q, most agreeable sensation by all present. 

Nassau Hall and her Sons — The tie which binds her absent sonb 
increases as the square of the distance. 

Archer Giffbrd, Esq., of Newark, said that the Committee had 
t>een pleased to remember in the regular toasts the Matrons of the 
oHiritry, to whorji n^uch was justly attributed. But if any &14I1 



34 

could be found with this sentiment it would be in its restriction to 
a portion of " the sex whose presence civilizes ours." He had at 
the table been pleased to hear the remarks of a distinguished Pro- 
fessor in an Eastern College respecting the increased attention in 
that institution to such arrangements as would secure a more ex- 
tended influence to female society on the labours and manners of 
the Student, and it was gratifying to know that in a near sister 
College recently established, female influence is intended by its 
founder, to use his own words, to be a constant and influential ele- 
ment in its administration, and as on festive occasions the compli- 
ment is seldom omitted, he begged leave now to propose 

"The Fair of our Country," 
which was received of course with a burst of enthusiasm. 

The following sentiment w r as offered by the Rev. Wm. Dod, the 
brother of the much lamented Professor. 

Robert Finley, D.D. — A child of Princeton, a son of Nassau Hall, 
and the Father of the American Colonization Society, an institution 
which we own as the offspring of our Alma Mater. 

The delightful feast was concluded, with devout thanksgiving by 
Rev. Dr. Junkin, President of Lafayette College. 



In the evening the Ladies connected in the families of the Presi- 
dent and Professors held a levee in the Hall of the Museum, which 
was appropriately decorated for the occasion. Among the paint- 
ings there were portraits of some of the most illustrious officers and 
friends of the College — Presidents Edwards, Witherspoon, Smith, 
Green and Camahan, Richard Stockton, father and son, Professor 
Hunter, Dr. Boudinot, Dr. Hosack, Rev. Drs. A. and J. W. Alex- 
ander and Rev. Dr. Miller, &c. Peale's famous picture comprising 
an original and full length portrait of VYashington, a representation 
of the battle of Princeton, and also a portrait of General Mercer, re- 
clining on the field of battle, after he had been mortally wounded, 
was among the ornaments of the brilliantly lighted room, and was 
surrounded with the stars and stripes, and above it was the shield 
nf New Jersey, bearing the dales— IT L7 and 1847. 



33 



INTERESTING LETTERS 

Were received from the Presidents and Professors of many of the 
Colleges of the Union, expressing regrets, &c., for their absence, 
also from many other distinguished persons who from ill health 
or previous pressing engagements were unable to be present at this 
celebration. 

From the many letters received we have selected the two fol- 
lowing, one from the venerable President Adams and the other from 
Chancellor Kent, both of whom it is well known, are recently de- 
ceased. 

Messrs. James Carnahan. Samuel Miller, M. Newkirk, and James 
S. Green, Trustees of the College of New Jersey, Princeton. 

Qui -toy, 17th June, 1847. 
Friends and Fellow-citizens, 

I have received your kind invitation of the 10th inst., to attend 
the celebration of the hundredth Anniversary of the College of New 
Jersey, on the 29th and 30th days of the present month. An invi- 
tation which I receive with the most grateful feelings, and which I 
should delight to accept, but for the infirm state of my health ; that 
however, will not at the present time permit me to absent myself 
■so far from heme. I must therefore content myself, by assuring 
you of my best wishes for the continued prosperity of that Institu- 
tion, to which I feel myself peculiarly indebted, for repeated testi- 
monials of their kindness and esteem, and with fervent prayer, to 
the Father of Lights that His blessing may beam with undimin- 
ished lustre from that golden candle-stick, which has now for the 
space of a full century, so largely contributed to illuminate our na- 
tive land. 

With great respect, gentlemen, 

I remain your faithful Friend, 
and Countryman, 

JOHN QUINCY ADAMS, 



36 



-idkhky OF CONGRESS 



II 



M 028 333 665 7 

rsew YorK ; juue? «x, A ^r. . 

To Messrs. the Reverend President Carnaban, Samuel Miller, 
M. Newkirk and James S. Green, Trustees of the College of New 
Jersey. 

Reverend Gentlemen : 

I received on Friday last your invitation to attend the Centenary 
celebration of the Institution of Princeton College, on the 29th inst. 
I could not well have received any invitation more honorable to my 
character, or more gratifying to my feelings, and I deeply regret at 
being obliged, from my impaired health, to forego the honour and 
the pleasure of accepting the invitation. I am greatly recovered 
from catarrhal and dyspepsical influences, which have afflicted me 
for some months, but I am as yet very weak, and it is deemed un- 
ad visible for me to tax my health and strength with the assumption 
of such a duty. 

This is my frank apology, and permit me to add that if I had suffi- 
cient strength, it would have afforded me the greatest pleasure to 
have met the Friends of Learning and Religion, and the officers, 
patrons, and alumni of that Institution, on the day of celebration, 
and to have mingled my joyous sympathies with theirs. My im- 
pressions of great respect for Princeton College were imbibed in 
early life, and they have been continually on the increase, in con- 
sideration of the character of the College for learning and piety, 
and of the many distinguished alumni who have sustained varied 
trusts, and discharged great public duties, both in Church and 
State with eminent usefulness and honour, 

I am, Reverend Gentlemen, 
With the greatest respect and consideration, 

Your obliged and faithful servant, 
JAMES KE^iT, 



